Hi all,
I've recently acquired tinnitus in my left ear. But before I talk about that, let me tell you about the other condition that affects my quality of life.
I've had chronic dry eye for over 5 years now, as a result of both contact lens and computer overuse. My dry eye started very mildly, but grew worse over the course of a couple years as an engineer. Eventually, I had to quit my job (and have not had an office job since then). For about the last 2 years, I've been seeing a corneal specialist on the east coast. With his help, I've gotten a lot better. However, in the last 3 months I've started feeling pain in my eyes for the first time. This, in my opinion, is a pretty big setback. I know there are things we can do for it and I remain optimistic for the future, but it's just disheartening to have taken many small steps forward and then a big step backward.
Regarding the tinnitus:
The tinnitus in my left ear may go back to August of this year, when I had ringing in my ears for a few days after being in the second row at a ZZ Top concert. I'm not sure if the ringing actually went away, or if it just got so quiet that I stopped noticing it. But a couple days ago, I suddenly noticed ringing in my left ear. This ringing fluctuates in pitch and loudness very rapidly (several times a second) and irregularly, so it's hard to ignore it. I also have a low level of pain in my left ear.
I went to an ENT doctor today and had a hearing test. Apparently, my hearing is normal. The doctor told me there's nothing I can do to make the ringing more constant in terms of pitch, and he suggested that I use white noise to try to train my brain to ignore it. I'm skeptical, however, since the pitch of the tinnitus seems to fluctuate so rapidly. He also mentioned the possibility of taking an anti-depressant, but I'm already taking nortriptyline as part of my dry eye routine.
Some things which may have caused the tinnitus:
1. Three rock concerts this year where I sat close to the front.
2. I use in-ear headphones every time I go to the gym, which is almost everyday. The volume is usually loud enough to drown out ambient noise but not so loud that my ears hurt.
3. Since about 17 years ago, I sometimes hear a "crackling" sound in my left ear when sound or music is too loud in that ear.
I'm not sure what to do at this point besides getting a second opinion or hoping that this all goes away soon. Any thoughts or suggestions?
I've recently acquired tinnitus in my left ear. But before I talk about that, let me tell you about the other condition that affects my quality of life.
I've had chronic dry eye for over 5 years now, as a result of both contact lens and computer overuse. My dry eye started very mildly, but grew worse over the course of a couple years as an engineer. Eventually, I had to quit my job (and have not had an office job since then). For about the last 2 years, I've been seeing a corneal specialist on the east coast. With his help, I've gotten a lot better. However, in the last 3 months I've started feeling pain in my eyes for the first time. This, in my opinion, is a pretty big setback. I know there are things we can do for it and I remain optimistic for the future, but it's just disheartening to have taken many small steps forward and then a big step backward.
Regarding the tinnitus:
The tinnitus in my left ear may go back to August of this year, when I had ringing in my ears for a few days after being in the second row at a ZZ Top concert. I'm not sure if the ringing actually went away, or if it just got so quiet that I stopped noticing it. But a couple days ago, I suddenly noticed ringing in my left ear. This ringing fluctuates in pitch and loudness very rapidly (several times a second) and irregularly, so it's hard to ignore it. I also have a low level of pain in my left ear.
I went to an ENT doctor today and had a hearing test. Apparently, my hearing is normal. The doctor told me there's nothing I can do to make the ringing more constant in terms of pitch, and he suggested that I use white noise to try to train my brain to ignore it. I'm skeptical, however, since the pitch of the tinnitus seems to fluctuate so rapidly. He also mentioned the possibility of taking an anti-depressant, but I'm already taking nortriptyline as part of my dry eye routine.
Some things which may have caused the tinnitus:
1. Three rock concerts this year where I sat close to the front.
2. I use in-ear headphones every time I go to the gym, which is almost everyday. The volume is usually loud enough to drown out ambient noise but not so loud that my ears hurt.
3. Since about 17 years ago, I sometimes hear a "crackling" sound in my left ear when sound or music is too loud in that ear.
I'm not sure what to do at this point besides getting a second opinion or hoping that this all goes away soon. Any thoughts or suggestions?
Member
) I also discovered that the more I used eye drops, the more I had to use them. My doctor didn't believe it, but a lot of bodily processes have feedback loops where intervention actually makes things worse.
